What She Leaves Behind
by loneguppy
Summary: All about Olivia's past sacrifices and future choices she needs to make to return home. Includes speculative first encounter between Olivia and John.
1. Memory

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen. I really didn't." When Walter Bishop was agitated, there is usually no calming him down. Good thing Astrid was there to soothe him, because his crazy rantings was beginning to grate on Peter's nerves. Unfortunately Walter has every reason to be upset and Peter Bishop shares his frustration.

"Are you sure, Astrid?"

"Yes. There is no mistake. She's like you; not from this side."

Astrid showed him the results of the spectrograph scans. Sure enough, Olivia emitted the telling energy signature that was only visible on anyone from the other universe.

Philip Broyles wanted to assign a security detail to protect Peter Bishop, but one glare from Peter convinced him that he will manage fine without one. It wasn't Peter he should be worried about anyways.

Right now Peter was kicking himself for not realizing sooner that the Olivia who came back with them was not the same one who risked her life to cross universes to get him, not the same one who recently declared her affection for him. Not his Olivia. No, that Olivia was still on the other side, captured by his father, a man who was hellbent on unleashing Armageddon on the only home he knew for the past twenty-five years.

The moment he learned the truth, he went straight to Philip Broyles.

"What are we going to do?"

He had little choice. Without a safe way to cross over, Olivia was on her own. Hopefully not everyone there was like his father. Since they discovered the Secretary's deception, the question was how to prepare a defense for what else he might throw at them. Newton was still at large. For all they knew, he could have brought over an entire army of shapeshifters, while he was enjoying his brief family reunion.

The best thing for Peter to do was to continue his efforts to make the new Fringe Division headquarters operational. There was no mistake why this base was made so very identical to the one on the other side. This was the favour he had promised Nina Sharp almost two years ago. No doubt both facilities had been designed by William Bell for the purpose of an inevitable confrontation.

Until that time, they will need to keep a picture of normalcy around the alternate Olivia. Peter agreed with Broyles' decision to put her under constant surveillance, to make sure that she does not vanish from under their collective noses. If she does, any information she may have vital to getting Olivia back, would disappear with her.

~ooo~

As much as she wanted to, Olivia didn't want to open her eyes. All she wanted to do was sleep. If she was asleep, she could pretend that she was dreaming, and wake up to find that she was back home again with Rachel and Ella. Unfortunately, this was not a dream. The first breath she took felt like fire in her lungs. Olivia sat up in a fit of coughing. When the episode passed, she took a moment to gather herself.

Still a little disoriented, Olivia doesn't remembered how she got there, wherever this place was. She found herself sitting on the ground by the side of a road. There was no one in sight; no people, no animals, nothing living. Taking a good look around. All the trees were dead as well.

Shivering Olivia put cold hands in her pockets and began to trudge on. The road up ahead was poorly illuminated. But from a distance, she could see a house. The porch light was on, suggesting someone was home. Olivia walks up to give the door a knock.

"Who is it?" The voice sounded familiar.

When the door opened, she did not expect to see the person inside. She stared back at the face of John Scott.

"Olivia?"

Before she even had a chance to respond, Olivia's eyelids felt heavy. She braced herself on the door frame for support.

"Hey. Are you OK?"

Olivia could feel her legs turn to jelly. Thankfully he was there to catch her before she fell unconscious onto the ground.

Olivia's eyes came into focus. She could see John Scott. It couldn't have been the same one. Could it? He must be an alternate. That much she was sure of. For starter, he even looked different. This man sported a beard. At that moment, she could not resist the urge to call him.

"John." He turned around at the sound of his name.

Putting down a basin of water, he replaces the cloth on the her forehead. He notices that she was slowly waking up.

"Look alive, soldier. Feeling better?"

"Mmm." It was all she could manage to say.

She was lying on a bed, his bed. John helped her to a sitting position, adjusting a cushion under her foot.

"It's swollen. Your ankle."

Olivia winced. It hurt when she tried to move it.

"It must have happened when you fell."

"You are Olivia...Dunham. Right?"

"Yes."

"I'm John..."

"...Scott. I know." John nods.

"How did you get here?" Olivia rubs her forehead.

"I don't really know."

"I guess that doesn't really matter."

John paused for a moment.

"Look. This is a little awkward. We know each others names. I just don't remember where we met."

OK. Maybe he was not an alternate. Olivia's interest was piqued. She volunteered more information about them.

"We were partners, at the F.B.I."

When he didn't say anything, she ventured on.

"You said that you loved me." Now he had a far away look on his face.

"I did. I got you a ring, but I never had the chance to give it to you..." He strokes her cheek with his fingers. Olivia looks at him with a mixture of fondness and sadness.

"I remember the day we met. I just transferred to the Boston office. For weeks, you pretended not to notice me noticing you. I thought you were the ice princess or something." Olivia chuckled.

"As I recall, I made the first move."

"Yeah. At the office Christmas party, under the mistletoe...You got drunk on eggnog."

"Nope. I had a little too much rum in mine."

"Oh? Is that why you wanted to do it under the desk?"

They both laughed at the memory. It was a good one. John leaned in close to kiss her gently on the lips.

~ooo~

"John." Olivia spoke out in delirium.

With what little light there was in the van, Broyles could see Olivia's brow furrowed. She was burning up.

"How much farther?"

Broyles fills another syringe with serum and injected Olivia with it.

"Just under an hour. How is she, Chief?"

Broyles feels Olivia's neck. Her pulse was becoming weaker.

"Not good would be an understatement."

Lincoln accelerates the van.

"We'll get there in time, sir."


	2. Remorse

Colonel Philip Broyles was well aware of the prisoner in isolation. He was there the night he witnessed her capture. That day was also the first time he had even heard about another Earth; one like this one but subtly different. The prisoner, Olivia Dunham's double, was from the other side. She had recently changed her appearance to past for their Agent Dunham.

Three days after her capture, the Secretary begun to subject the prisoner to a series of tests geared to assess her unique abilities. She did not go willingly. By the third week, she did not care what they did to her anymore. When she looked out the glass partition she did so without acknowledging his presence. Now three months later, she was but a shell of her former self. Broyles never saw anyone not care whether she lived or died. The last time, he saw her in the cell, the prisoner lay unmoving on the hard bench.

The Secretary briefed Broyles on what he has planned.

"I am convinced there are many more universes in existence. Arguably there must be more than one Peter out there as well. I want to use Agent Dunham's replacement here to help me find him."

What the Secretary intended was to put her in an drug induced state and force her to see beyond the confines of their two worlds. Under any circumstances, that act would be considered unethical. Broyles decided then that he is not consciously going to let that happen. But he needed help.

Lincoln Lee was told about the truth of the other Olivia the day he left the hospital.

"Just tell me what to do, Chief."

~ooo~

The gunshot resonance pierced the air, jarring Olivia to alertness with a gasp.

It took a while for her to recover from the initial shock, before she could register where she was. Olivia saw that she was lying on a hospital bed, but she was definitely not in a hospital. She was surrounded only by darkness.

She could feel the intense heat from the fire before she saw it. There were flames that came alive directly in front of her. Olivia used her hand to shield the brightness, so she was better able to see someone come out of it. As the footsteps got closer, she saw who it was.

"Charlie." She almost said out loud.

He emerged from the towering inferno, unscathed.

"Really Liv?" He walked around, the whole while looking at something on the ground, that she couldn't see.

"It isn't bad enough I die for you, you had to take away my soul too. That's cold." He kicked at it.

"Charlie...I...I don't..."

She sat up to see what was down there. Lying at his feet was the dead shapeshifter Charlie.

"For God sake Liv. He wasn't just impersonating me. He became me."

Olivia's eyes started welling. "Sorry Charlie...I'm so sorry. I didn't know."

"You know they're just going to come after you again. Maybe I should just put you out your misery." Charlie leveled a gun at her.

"Huh..." Olivia felt the grip of a gun in her own hand. She aimed it now at him in defense.

"So long Liv."

Before he could fire, Olivia closed her eyes and squeezed off a round. There was a resounding thud. Then darkness descended.

"No!"

~ooo~

With guns aimed at the sky, Charlie and Broyles stormed into the lab where they held Olivia. Two men in white stood on either side of her, one of them held an empty auto-injector.

Charlie rushed over with his gun trained on them.

"Step away from her!... Now!" They obeyed his warning and backed away immediately.

After he checked on Olivia, Charlie delivered the bad news to Broyles.

"Sir, she's been dosed already."

"Did you bring it?" Charlie took out several vials.

"This was all I could find."

"It will have to do."

Broyles loaded a syringe and gave Olivia an injection. Nothing happened. Quickly he gathered Olivia in his arms and carried her outside. It saddened him to see how amazingly light she became.

"Come on. Lincoln is waiting."


	3. Revelation

Olivia found herself standing outside Walter's lab. From the hallway outside, she noticed that the lab door was slightly ajar. She could hear muffled voices coming from the office in the back. When she got nearer to hear, she could make out some of the conversation going on.

"Ella, tell me again what Aunt Liv said when she gave you that cross."

It was Rachel and Ella.

"Only that it belonged to grandma and that she wanted me to have it."

It seems like a lifetime ago since she had seen them both. It would be worth it, even if it was a dream. She smiled and released the breath she didn't know she had been holding. But as soon as she approached the door, it slammed shut unceremoniously in her face.

"Olivia."

"Huh..."

"It's so good to see you again."

The sound of William Bell's voice made her spin around so fast, it was dizzying.

Bell was standing right in front of her. He smiled at her warmly, the same way he always did in their previous encounters. There was something about the way he spoke that put her at ease.

"What am I doing here?"

Bell took Olivia by the elbow and guided her to a nearby seat.

"You are not really here. None of us are." Olivia had a puzzled expression on her face.

"I don't understand."

"I'm afraid you've been in a coma, my dear."

Olivia leans over the bench to slowly absorb this information.

"Am I dying?"

"No, you are not. You are going home today. You _are_ going back because of Peter."

"Olivia. Listen carefully. I am about to entrust you with a secret. Billions of lives may depend on it.

"There are some truths even Walter doesn't know.

"The Observers believed Peter to be special. Do you know why?" Olivia shakes her head no.

"As you know, Walter's own son was very sick. That boy adored his father. So much so, that whenever Walter was away, young Peter would envision spending more time with his father. What he didn't know was that his imagination became the foundation for the alternate reality. That was his gift. When he died, that world should have gone with him. Except it didn't."

"Because of Peter." Bell was pleasantly surprised by Olivia's quick deduction.

"Yes. Don't ask me why. Peter was the link to its continued existence."

Bell leaned closer to Olivia before he spoke again.

"To make sure they still exist, you have to keep Peter from going back."

Olivia could not believe it. Yet again the weight of the world was being put on her shoulders, whether she wanted it or not. If she were not already unconscious, she would certainly wish to wake up from this nightmare.

"Promise me you will stay by Peter no matter what."

Olivia did not hesitate.

"OK. I'll do it."

Bell looks far off behind her. Olivia turned to see what he was staring at, but saw nothing.

"You are almost home. Peter has something to tell you. Wake up soon so you can hear what he has to say. Heck even I want to know what he will say."

He laughed.

"I'm almost out of time. Remember what I have told you. Goodbye Olivia. You've made an old man proud." Olivia watches as William Bell dissolved right in front of her eyes.

~ooo~

"Do you think she will do the right thing, Dr. Bell?"

"In the end, she will, September. I have confidence in her."

"It's time to go."


	4. Coda

When they arrived at the rendezvous point, their counterpart from the other universe was already there waiting. They obviously received the message.

"Chief. Look." Lincoln indicated the figure just getting out of an SUV.

"I see him too." Colonel Broyles found himself staring back at his twin from the other side. From the way he carried himself, it was safe to assume that he was a person of some authority.

Philip got out of the van to speak with his double.

"Colonel Broyles." His double nodded.

"I haven't gone by that rank for quite some time. It's Agent Broyles now."

Lincoln was instructed to exchange positions with the vehicle from the other side. Agent Broyles showed them their Agent Dunham who was handcuffed in the back of his SUV.

"I don't think she should give you any trouble."

Without saying another word, Agent Broyles, disappeared into the back of the van as they watch the teleporter activate and take them back to where they belonged.

~ooo~

Peter waited for them at Massive Dynamic's medical facility. He was so eager to see her, he vaguely registered what was said during the chaos. One of the medics was performing chest compressions. Did they say her heart stopped for five minutes?

Agent Broyles had Walter examine the contents of the vials, he brought back with him. The serum contained venom. It was a lethal toxin, not found in any known species of snake. Broyles and Peter watched as Walter quickly launched into a furious diatribe questioning the bad judgment used resorting to poison as a counter agent to fend off the affects of the Secretary's own blend of psychotropic drugs.

"Irresponsible...unethical...nincompoop..."

Above the din of Walter's mad rantings, Peter was able to hear Broyles say that it was her idea. Unfortunately, there was little anyone could do now except wait.

~ooo~

Olivia laid on the bed unmoving. She was alive and badly malnourished. Peter volunteered to replace the IV bag that fed her intravenously. Hospitals usually made him feel uneasy. He hated being there. But he could not bare to tear away from Olivia's side for even a minute. This simple tasks made him feel somewhat useful. Unlike the last time Olivia came back from a trip over there, he found himself feeling of all things guilty. The guilt for letting this happen to her was strong even if he was not the one who actually inflicted her pain. He didn't know what to say to her that will alleviate his guilt. What could he tell her that hasn't been said before? Sorry seemed woefully inadequate. Peter Bishop what a mess you have got yourself into this time.

~ooo~

Olivia opened her eyes slowly. She focused her vision on the holes in the ceiling tiles. Her throat hurt when she tried to swallow. She felt pain so she must be alive. She tried to move her head, but her neck was stiff. There probably wasn't a more uncomfortable posture than lying on a hospital bed. She turned her head gingerly and saw Walter. The sound of her slight movement got his attention. She saw the relief that washed over his face,

"Thank God." Was all Walter said before he bolted out her room in search of Peter.

Walter returned with Peter in tow. Seeing the way he persuaded Walter to calm down said to her, that Peter was not angry with him anymore. It made her feel good to see that.

Peter noticed the way Olivia tracked his movements with her eyes. She smiled wanly at him. He leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. Normally quick to voice his opinion, he couldn't find the words to express himself. Except for this.

"Hey."

Olivia chuckled at his sentiment. Peter had tears in his eyes, but he too laughed at the absurdity of the situation.

"I'm home." It was more a statement than a question.

"Yes. You are." Peter beamed.

He wiped a tear from her face. Olivia returned the gesture. Her hand lingered on his face a while longer.

"You need to shave." This made Peter laugh some more.

~ooo~

When Peter came to visit a few days later, he found Olivia sitting on the sofa facing the window. She rested her chin on the chair arm, just staring outside. She turned to him with a smile. He gave her the package of chocolate M&Ms she had asked for. She thanked him for it and tore open the wrapping. Having picked out a yellow one to put it in her mouth, she grimaced and said, "Yep. It still taste like medicine."

She seemed satisfied when she looked back at him. Peter was bewildered.

~ooo~

Olivia had been behaving oddly since returning home. Sure people changed sometimes waking up from comas. Peter became worried though when Olivia had asked Broyles for an extended leave of absence. And when she told him that she was going on a trip, he voiced his concern. Touched, she kissed him on the cheek for caring.

"I'll be fine. I am just going to a spa to relax for a few days." A lie. Peter knew she wasn't telling him everything, but didn't want to push the issue. That was her way. Cautious. He hoped given time, she would open up to him again.

"I'll be here when you get back." He said it before, but he wanted her to know it just the same.

~ooo~

The Bishops' beach house at Reiden Lake still had boarded up windows. Olivia sat in her car outside for a while before going inside. She had asked Walter about Peter's things when he was a boy. She didn't have to say which Peter she had meant. He told her without question that Mrs. Bishop kept them in storage at the beach house.

Olivia didn't know what she expected to find. Maybe a sign. She just remembered what William Bell told her about Peter in her dream.

She found a small box marked PETER AGE 7 on the shelf. They were things that were valuable to a boy who had spent too many days cooped up inside because he was too sick to go out and play; comic books, postcards from Walter, his diary, a model airship. And then Olivia saw it; a crayon drawing. She held the drawing closer to the light. It was faded, but she could still see the red tint. It was a drawing of the Green Lantern.

~Intermission~

**

* * *

OK. I'll end it here and wait to see how Season 3 unfolds.**

**This was a happy experiment. I started out wanting to explore what was happening to Olivia before she got home. The part about William Bell came later because I wanted to speculate what he knew about Peter's past.**

**It was kind of a neat surprise to learn that the show creators want to revisit Peter's past next season as well.**

**I hope you like it.**


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